Sleigh Beds

What makes a sleigh bed, and how to choose one

A sleigh bed takes its name from its shape: the headboard and footboard both curve outward, so the bed reads like a sleigh seen from the side. Most frames here follow the Louis Philippe pattern, a nineteenth-century form with a plain scrolled crown, flat panel faces and bracket feet. The rest are modern reworkings, either a squared-off panel sleigh or a fabric-wrapped version with a tufted headboard. Buyers searching for a scroll bed or a curved headboard bed are looking at the same shape.

Solid wood carries most of this range. Rubberwood frames finished in cherry, black, gray, white and cappuccino make up the traditional group, with bracket feet and matching footboards, and several are described as solid wood throughout. The upholstered group wraps a wood frame in linen, polyester or velvet and adds button tufting across the headboard. A smaller group uses fluted corner posts and a natural rustic tone instead of a polished finish.

Sleigh beds are sold by mattress size: twin at 38 by 75 inches, full at 54 by 75, queen at 60 by 80, king at 76 by 80 and California king at 72 by 84. Two things make a sleigh bed take more floor than a platform bed of the same size. The curved footboard pushes the total length several inches past the mattress, and the flared rails widen the footprint. Measure for the frame's stated external dimensions rather than the mattress size, and leave walking room past the foot of the bed.

Check the foundation line before you buy. Most traditional sleigh beds in this range sit the mattress on a box spring inside the rails, which is what gives the classic silhouette its height. A smaller group takes the mattress directly on slats and is listed as no box spring needed. Because the footboard is fixed and curved, a sleigh bed also sets a practical limit on mattress depth: a very deep pillow-top can bury the footboard detail you bought the bed for. Weight capacity and slat support are listed per frame.

Finish decides the room it suits. Cherry, black and gray Louis Philippe frames suit a traditional or transitional bedroom and pair naturally with a matching wooden dresser and nightstand. White and cappuccino lighten the same shape for a smaller room or a child's room, and the twin and full sizes are made for that. The tufted upholstered sleigh beds suit a bedroom where the bed is the only decorative piece, and the velvet and linen versions soften a room that is otherwise all wood.